1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle front pillar construction.
2. Description of the Background Art
As a vehicle front pillar, there is known a front pillar 100 as shown in FIG. 7 in which an outer panel 102 and an inner panel 103 are joined together at flange portions 104, 105 formed along both edges thereof with a stiffener 101 held therebetween to thereby form a closed cross section. In this front pillar 100, the volume of the closed cross section is secured by a balance between a maximum width dimension C and a maximum depth dimension D so as to satisfy the body rigidity and collision performance thereof. In the case of the this front pillar 100, a windshield 110 is supported by the flanges 104, which are one of the flanges, a gap between the windshield 110 and the outer panel 102 is closed by a garnish 111, a door seal 112 is provided on the flanges 105, which are the other of the flanges, so that a seal is produced between a door sash 113 and the front pillar 100 by the door seal 112 so provided, and an interior material 114 is mounted further inside than the front pillar 100 so as to cover the inner panel 103.
In addition, there exists another front pillar construction (refer, for example, to Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. JP-A-2002-2533) in which a hollow member with a closed cross section is integrally molded by a hydroforming process in order to realize an increase in body rigidity and an outer panel is mounted on an outside of the hollow member so molded so as to form a front pillar. In this front pillar, a flange portion is provided at one end of the outer panel in such a manner as to project further outwards than the hollow member so as to support a windshield by the flange portion so provided.
In the case of the related-art front pillar construction shown in FIG. 7, while a range of blind spot is produced from an end portion of the interior material 114 to an end portion of the door sash 113, since the maximum width dimension C of the closed cross section that is formed by the outer panel 102 and the inner panel 103 and the flange portion 104 is provided which supports the windshield 110, a width dimension of the interior material 114 becomes extremely large, and as a result, the range of blind spot is increased.
In addition, also in the case of the front pillar disclosed in the JP-A-2002-2533 which includes the hollow member and the outer panel, since the flange portion projecting further outwards than the hollow member is provided at the end of the outer panel so that the windshield is mounted thereon, a range of blind spot is also increased.